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Climate Change News

Carbon tax will not be implemented if not ready – Treasury official

By: Terence Creamer 18th June 2013 South Africa’s National Treasury is still aiming to institute a carbon tax on January 1, 2015, but chief director for economic and tax analysis Cecil Morden reports that government will only move ahead should it feel that the tax is ready for implementation. Confronted at a National Business... →

China takes cautious step towards carbon emissions trading

By: Reuters 18th June 2013 China launched its first pilot carbon emissions exchange on Tuesday, though plans for a nationwide roll out and efforts to apply the scheme to some polluting heavy industries could be undermined by a slowdown in the world's No.2 economy. High-emission industries such as aluminium and steel are... →

LDCs demand clarity on climate-change mitigation finance from developed States

By: Natalie Greve 14th June 2013 The United Nations (UN) Least Developed Countries (LDCs) collective has requested that industrialised nations provide detailed information about the finance they are willing to provide to aid vulnerable States in their adaptation to, and mitigation of, climate change. This information should be... →

SA’s leading steel producer gears up for carbon-tax battle

By: Terence Creamer 4th June 2013 Steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (Mittal) has again warned that the National Treasury’s proposed carbon tax will have a yearly negative financial impact on the company of between R600-million and R650-million. It has also confirmed that it is preparing a detailed response to the National... →

Greening city infrastructure can help sustain economic growth – report

24th May 2013 The United Nations (UN) released a report showing that greening city urban infrastructure can sustain economic growth while using fewer natural resources. →

Moscow willing to finance SA nuclear plants if Russian bid prevails

By: Keith Campbell 26th April 2013 During bilateral talks held at the same time as the Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (better known as Brics) summit held in Durban on March 26/27, Russian President Vladimir Putin told South African President Jacob Zuma that Moscow was willing to fully finance South Africa’s planned new... →

Climate change negatively affects the global economy

By: Anine Kilian 29th March 2013 Carbon advisory firm Promethium Carbon, together with the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB), launched a publication earlier this month that provides reporting committees and internal auditors with a reference tool on integrated and climate-change-related reporting, as the effects of... →

New GHG accreditation programme launched to improve credibility

By: Anine Kilian 29th March 2013 The South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) launched an accreditation programme last month for greenhouse gases (GHG) validation and verification bodies (V/VBs), in accordance with International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) standards, to ensure that GHG declarations of... →

Carbon calculator assists in determining carbon footprint

By: Anine Kilian 29th March 2013 The South African Fruit and Wine Industry Confronting Climate Change initiative, which is in its second phase, updated its carbon calculator this year to assist members in the agriculture sector in calculating their carbon footprint. The new carbon calculator on the Confronting Climate Change... →

Technology assists businesses in improving environmental awareness

By: Anine Kilian 29th March 2013 Information technology (IT) consulting company Dataflo is using German multinational software corporation SAP’s technology to assist and advise businesses in making their business divisions such as production, procurement and logistics more environmentally aware. One such example is through SAP... →

World will be forced to spend more on climate adaptation over next 40 years – Randers

By: Terence Creamer 13th March 2013 Professor of climate strategy at the Norwegian Business School Jorgen Randers, who co-authored of the trailblazing 1972 book The Limits to Growth and last year authored 2052 – A Global Forecast for the Next Forty Years, has warned that investments related to climate adaptation will rise strongly... →

Sasol warns of possible unintended carbon-tax consequences

By: Terence Creamer 11th March 2013 The unintended consequences of South Africa’s proposal to introduce a carbon tax as from January 1, 2015, had to be analysed, Sasol CEO David Constable said on Monday. Speaking following the release of the energy and chemical group’s interim results, Constable noted that South Africa would be... →

Sustainable solutions needed to deal with worrying imbalances, says Saice president

By: Schalk Burger 1st March 2013 Environmentalists and demographers increasingly warn of the dire consequences of population growth, not only for present generations, but also of the decline of essential biodiversity and the environmental degradation and deterioration in the quality of life for future generations, says South... →

Dairy processing plant most energy efficient in southern hemisphere

By: Sashnee Moodley 15th February 2013 The integration of Swedish technology into local dairy company Coega Dairy’s processing plant at the Coega Industrial Development Zone outside Port Elizabeth, has elevated the plant’s status to the “most environment-friendly and energy efficient operation in the southern hemisphere”, according to... →

Paint technology reduces domestic energy consumption

By: Sashnee Moodley 15th February 2013 South African homes can lower their energy consumption costs and contribute to environmental sustainability by using coatings manufacturer Plascon’s roof paint, Nuroof Cool, with Herotech Enviroshield formulation. →

Second Africa CDM centre to be established

By: Natasha Odendaal 14th February 2013 The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has established a second regional collaboration centre in Africa to assist under-represented regions to realise the benefits of the Kyoto Protocol’s clean development mechanism (CDM) projects. UNFCCC executive secretary... →

SA enthusiasm for carbon capture waning – Lennon

By: Leandi Kolver 13th February 2013 Enthusiasm surrounding carbon capture and storage (CCS) seemed to be deteriorating, State-owned power utility Eskom group executive for sustainability Dr Steve Lennon said on Wednesday. Speaking at the CCS – EU/RSA Partnership: A Focus on Carbon Capture conference, in Midrand, he pointed out... →

SA urged to implement green econ development only if viable

By: Idéle Esterhuizen 13th February 2013 South Africa must only adopt a green approach to developing its economy, if it made economic sense, World Wide Fund for Nature South Africa Living Planet Unit head Saliem Fakir said on Tuesday. Speaking at the first leg of the Green Growth Roadshow, which is funded by the British High Commission... →

Software giant signs 49M pledge

By: Joanne Taylor 1st February 2013 Data processing company Systems Applications and Products (SAP) Africa has signed the 49M pledge to make a concerted contribution to the reduction of electricity consumption on the continent. →

Concerns aired over SA’s capacity to build, operate and maintain renewables facilities

By: Joanne Taylor 1st February 2013 South Africa’s capacity to deliver on the envisaged Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers programme (REIPPP) projects is lacking in light of the requirements for local Independent Power Producers (IPPs), says AEG Power Solutions 3W Power division MD Trevor de Vries. →

Global monitoring system for biodiversity needed

By: Natasha Odendaal 18th January 2013 Research into biodiversity and human society could be improved through the development of a global biodiversity monitoring system similar to the system implemented to monitor climate change, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) said. Questions such as what fraction of... →

Adaptation planning needed to protect poor from climate risks – study

By: Natalie Greve 10th January 2013 Communities with low socioeconomic status based on income, education and housing would be the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, a new Water Research Commission (WRC) study showed. →

SA and world urged to accelerate carbon-capture efforts

By: Terence Creamer 9th January 2013 South Africa, which relies primarily on coal to produce most of its electricity, is set to raise the profile of its carbon capture and storage (CCS) initiatives in 2013, amid a call from the International Energy Agency (IEA) for a renewed focus on the deployment of CCS as part of international... →

Eskom mulls big biomass co-firing plan in bid to lower coal emissions

By: Terence Creamer 14th December 2012 South Africa’s State-owned electricity utility Eskom is considering an ambitious plan to begin burning biomass alongside coal at some of its power stations, as part of a strategy aimed at lowering the group’s sizeable carbon footprint. →

Most funds have ‘head in the sand’ approach to climate risk – survey

By: Natasha Odendaal 11th December 2012 A new survey by the Asset Owners Disclosure Project (AODP) has found that most of the world’s largest investment and pension funds are unprepared for climate change and lack climate risk strategies, but identified South Africa’s Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) as a “noteworthy... →

Exxaro tops carbon-disclosure log, while SA shows Brics leadership

By: Terence Creamer 22nd November 2012 Black-empowered resources group Exxaro climbed to the top of the JSE Top 100 Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI) in 2012, closely followed by fellow miners Gold Fields and Harmony – in 2011, Gold Fields topped the CDLI. A total of 78 leading public companies (measured by market... →

SA’s Green Fund attracts 590 applications

By: Terence Creamer 22nd November 2012 A total of 590 funding applications for potential sustainable-development projects worth R10.9-billion have been received following the issuance of request for proposals (RFP) under the South African government’s newly established Green Fund. The RFP closed on October 24, with funding... →

Investors exposed to climate and water risks, says WWF report

By: Idéle Esterhuizen 20th November 2012 Investors have limited choices when it comes to tackling investment constraints like carbon and water risks, highlighting the need for government and regulators to urgently take action, a new report by WWF South Africa (WWF-SA) and WWF-UK has shown. The report, ‘Navigating Muddy Waters: Securing... →

Proposed Zambezi hydropower dams pose some risks, expert warns

12th October 2012 Existing and proposed hydropower dams are not properly evaluated for the risks of natural hydrological variability, which is extremely high in the Zambezi river, not to mention the risks posed by climate change, says US State of Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services hydrologist... →

Mining industry increasingly seeking water solutions

By: Natasha Odendaal 27th September 2012 The global mining water and wastewater sector was expected to grow as the focus on sustainable water solutions within the mining industry increased, a recent report by Frost & Sullivan found. In its ‘CEO 360 Degree Perspective of the Global Mining Water and Wastewater Treatment Market’ report,... →

SA teams gaining in solar-race confidence

By: Natasha Odendaal 21st September 2012 As the teams entered the third leg of the 11-day 5 400 km Sasol Solar Challenge, it emerged that the South African teams had started gaining momentum as more cars reached the finishing point on their own steam. The two Japanese teams, Tokai University and team Kenjiro Shinozuka, held on to the... →

Solar car challenge gets under way on Tuesday

By: Natasha Odendaal 17th September 2012 Sasol’s Solar Challenge South Africa was set to kick off on Tuesday after 12, mostly academic, teams completed multiple final vehicle testing processes at Zwartkop Raceway, in Pretoria, on Monday. The competition, which was held by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile every two years,... →

Two SA mining firms among top carbon disclosure leaders

By: Megan van Wyngaardt 13th September 2012 South African mining firms Anglo American and its 80%-owned subisdiary South African mining firms Anglo American and its 80%-owned subisdiary Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) are included in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index (CDLI) which forms part of the UK-based Carbon Disclosure... →

SA smart-grid deployment should draw on global experiences

31st August 2012 A domestic smart grid must be mapped out correctly to avoid any unnecessary and awkward setbacks, as have been experienced by some projects internationally, and requires government to partially fund the projects, says Frost & Sullivan energy and power Africa business unit leader Cornelis van der... →

Firm identifies sustainability megaforces that will affect business

By: Zandile Mavuso 17th August 2012 Business has, over the past 20 years, recognised how it impacts on the world, but only recently has it become evident how the world affects the way in which companies do business, reports professional services firm KPMG. →

Organisation says efficiency initiatives a success

By: Zandile Mavuso 17th August 2012 The National Cleaner Production Centre of South Africa (NCPC-SA) reports that its Resource Efficiency and Cleaner Production (RECP) programme and the Industrial Energy Efficiency Improvement (IEE) project have achieved some successes since their inception. →

Global warming could benefit potato industry

By: Yolandi Booyens 10th August 2012 Climate change could result in a positive outcome for the potato industry and possibly lead to potatoes becoming one of the top staple crops in the world, says University of Pretoria (UP) Potato Pathology Programme manager Dr Jacquie van der Waals. She says the potato appears to be the only crop,... →

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